The Pressure is On!

Grocery Bargaining Update

July 30, 2007

Our Share the Success campaign continues to build the pressure on the employers — and we’ll stand strong until they Share the Success:

Bread Event

One loaf for Elizabeth McKay-Campion and other grocery workers — and 500 loaves for the CEO. Our bread event dramatized the 500 to 1 ratio between what grocery CEOs are paid and what workers earn.

Chopp with Hatfield

Washington State Speaker of the House Frank Chopp (left, with Local 44 President Mike Hatfield) calls on grocery chains to Share the Success by supporting workers and our communities.

  • Religious leaders and other community allies joined the union bargaining team before negotiations begin to hear about our campaign and show their strong support. Representatives of the Church Council, the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, the National Organization for Women, and dozens of others were there with us.
  • Customers are showing their support, with Share the Success signs showing up in front yards — and Share the Success balloons showing up in stores — from North Bend to Federal Way to Port Angeles.
  • Local elected officials are joining us at store actions to lend their support to our campaign.
  • Workers demonstrated the difference between CEO salaries and workers’ wages by piling up hundreds of loaves of bread outside the Queen Anne Safeway. Four television stations and one newspaper were there as we dramatized the 500 to 1 gap between what these CEOs make and what grocery workers earn. (Check out our YouTube video at ShareTheSuccess.org)

In the days and weeks ahead, we’ll be kicking it up another notch, expanding our actions to even more stores and more communities across Western Washington.

It’s crunch time, and the pressure is on. Talk to your Union Representative and join the campaign for a contract that Shares the Success.

Progress Continues

Victory in
Southern California!

Grocery workers in Southern California have voted to approve a new contract that’s been called an “overwhelming victory” for union members. The new contract boosts wages, dramatically improves medical benefits, and ends a two-tier system that stopped new employees from ever reaching the top rate of pay.

Congratulations to Southern California grocery workers on their inspiring victory. They’ve shown once again how powerful workers can be when we take action together and take our message to the public.

For more national bargaining news, visit
www.groceryworkersunited.com.

Back-to-back bargaining sessions this week brought some progress, mostly on health benefits. The employers continue to move in our direction — but they continue to move far too slowly.

At this point in negotiations, the union committee is focused on a careful review of all the outstanding issues. We’re also working with consultants to address how much money is needed to keep our medical and pension plans strong.

This is critical work that affects all the other issues we’re fighting for, but it doesn’t leave a lot to report. We can report after this week’s sessions that:

Protecting Our Contract: The employers finally gave up on their attempt to take away time and a half pay on holidays. They also dropped their proposal to extend the probationary period to 90 days.

Wages, Sick Leave, and Family‑Friendly Scheduling: We continue to push on these critical issues. We’re not going to let progress on our medical plan come at the expense of real wage increases and advances on sick leave and scheduling.

What’s Next

We have scheduled three bargaining dates in early August. We’ll only see progress at these bargaining sessions if we continue to take action in the stores and our communities. We can do it if we continue to stand together, and stand strong.

Bargaining Updates | Grocery